Elevator safety device.



No. 73 9j 078. I PATENTBD SEPT. 15,1903.

1 G HAIL.

ELEVATOR SAFETY DEVIGE. APPLICATION FILED NOV. 13, 1902.

N0 MODEL. 2 SHEETS-SHEET 1 wiesses 5 akoP m m: Nana's PETERS coPuma-Luke WASHINGTON, In:v

1N0. 739,078.- I PATBNTED SEPT. 16, 1-903.

" G. HAIL.

ELEVATOR SAFETY'DEVIGE. APPLIOATION, FILED NOV. 13, 1902.

rue-"hams PETERS bof. PHOTD-UTHQ. WASHINGTON. n. c.

UNITED STATES Patented. September 15,1903.

PATENT OFFICE.

ELEVATOR SAFETY DEVlCE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 739,078, datedSeptember 15, 1903.

Application filed November 13, 190% Serial No. 131,096- (No model-Y TaZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, GEORGE HAIL, of- Provi-v deuce, in the county ofProvidence and State of Rhode Island, have invented certain new ver, sothat when the door is opened the valve and its lever cannot be operatedand which at the same time will not lock the valve-lever in openposition in case a door is opened when the elevator-car is in motion.

The invention has further forits object to provide means for withdrawingthe look from engagement with the lever in case the looking mechanismshould be actuated by the opening of a door when the car is at rest at apoint remote therefrom. It is possible with many of the existing formsof door-locked controllers to have the car locked against movementeither at a landing or at a point between two landings by the opening ofa dooreither above or below the car.

According to this invention mechanism is provided for temporarilyrendering the looking mechanism inoperative to permit the car to proceedto the landing where the door is opened, so that the operator may closethe said open door. This freeing mechanism is of great benefit toelevator-repairers and janitors by enabling them to move the car fromthe car itself or from the landing, as they desire, while working uponor around the'car regardless as to whether the doors are open or closed.

Referring to the drawings, Figure l represents more or lessconventionally an elevator shaft or hatchway, an elevator-car, thevalvelever, and the mechanism by which the lever is locked when oneofthe landing-doors is open. Fig. 2 represents one form of lock whichmaybe employed to engage the valvelever. Fig. 3 represents the samecontrivance ..with the bell-crank lever shifted, so as to to thehoisting mechanism. Fig. 5 represents another form of the lockingdevicein which the bolt is provided with a locking member or bow. Fig. 6represents in perspective view a form of locking-bow which may besecured to the valve-lever. Fig. 7' represents more or less diagrammatically another embodi ment of the invention. Fig. 8 represents inperspective view the valve-lever, the controllerline attached thereto,and one form of bow secured to said lever.

On the drawings, referring more particularly to Fig. 1, a a indicate thelanding-doors, which are normally closed, and Z) the elevator-car. v

0 indicates the controller or rope, which may be actuated by theattendant on the car. This rope or line may be either grasped by thehand ofv the operator or else it may be shifted by means of a wheel orlever, the drawings illustratinga lever for accomplishing this purpose.

Adjacent each door is an electric switch d, arranged in a safety-circuit6, said circuit including a source of supply, as a generator,

(indicated ate',) and an electromagnetf. The .line 0 is connected by anysuitable means with the lever g of the ordinary valve mechanism,(indicated as a Whole at h.) By raising or lowering the line thevalve-lever g may be shifted to cause the admission of fluid intothehoisting mechanism or to cut off the supply therefrom in thewell-known way. The locking mechanism includesa memberdwhich forconvenience ofnomenclature may be termed a bolt, although by that termthere jj on a supporting-plate 7c, said-supportingplate likewisesupporting the maguetf. The said magnetf is of the solenoid type, andits plunger f is connected by a linkf with a lateral arm m of theT-shaped lever m. The other lateral arm m of the said lever is providedwith a weight m which serves to partially-balance the weight of theplungerf, the plunger being of sufficient weight, howover, to swing saidlever about its centerfof t', t", projecting from the bolt 1'. The leverm is fulcrumed upon a stud m projecting from the plate 70, said partsbeing constructed and arranged whereby when the plunger f is movedupward the three-armed lever m is moved to thefull-line position in Fig.1, so as to retract the bolt or lock t'. \Vhen the plunger drops,however, the lever drops to the dottedline position, so as to projectthe bolt, as shown in Fig. 2. For convenience the operative meansbetween the doors and the lever m is illustrated as comprising anormally closed safety-circuit with switches whereby when one of thedoors is open the solenoid is deenergized to permit the plunger to dropand effect the projection of the bolt i; but it will be understood thatany equivalent means may be employed in lieu thereof, the invention notrelating to the particular operative means between the door and thelock, but to the locking mechanism coacting therewith.

The boltt' is arranged substantially at right angles to the plane ofmovement of the lever g, and one of the parts (either bolt or lever) isprovided with a locking member or how, with which the other is adaptedto be engaged. In Fig. 1 the locking member orbow is illustrated asbeing secured to the lever 9, whereas in Fig. 5 the said member is shownas mounted upon the bolt 2'. This member consists of an elongated stripn, bent at its ends, as at a, and having opposing shoulders 12 01 toform a notch or space a between them. These shoulders may be formeddirectly on the strip 17., as shown in Fig. 8, or else they may beformed separately and secured thereto, as shown in Fig. 6, in which casethey are adjustable longitudinally of the bow to compensate forvariations in the play of the lever due to one cause or another. Theprojection which forms each shoulder is provided with a convex'edge at,which forms to all intents and purposes a continuation of the curvedsurface of the bent end 11'.

Where the locking member or how is attached to the valve-lever g, asshown in Fig. l, the notch or space n between the shoulders n is ofsuflicient width to receive the end of the bolt t1 and at the same timeto permit the slight relative movement of the lever g for allowing acertain requisite loose or idle movement of the valve when itis inneutral position. \Vhere the bow is mounted upon the end of the bolt i,the leverg is provided with a relativelysmall projection g to enter thenotch or space if. From this description it will be seen that witheither arrangement the projection of the bolt 2' by the accidental ormalicious opening of the door when the car is running will not preventthe free movement of the lever g, for the curved ends of the bow(whether carried by the bow and engaged by the lever, or vice versa)when the lever g is swung upon its fulcrum will force the bolt '2'gradually backward until the projection g or the end of the bolt 1'registers .shown in dotted lines in Fig. 5. .door be opened while thecar is running, it "will not prevent the free movement of thevalve-lever to neutral position, inasmuch as with the recess, socket, ornotch n of the bow, whereupon the bolt will snap forward and thevalve-lever will be held against further actuation until. the open dooris closed and the bolt withdrawn.

As has been stated, the operative means between the doors and the boltin Fig. 1 includes a normally closed electric circuit; but should it bedesired to employ the bolt in connection with a normally open circuit itmay be done by shifting the fulcrum or stud of the three-armed lever mto an aperture in the plate It, as shown in Fig. 3, said plate beingprovided with the apertures 70 k for the fulcrum or stud m. For the samepurpose the bolt 1' is provided with two pairs of pins 1" to receive theend of the arm at, according to the location of the lever. To limit themovement of the bolt, it is provided with suitable stops, as at 71 toengage the guidesj. In lieu of supporting the bolt 21 in the guides j itmay be supported upon the swinging links 0 o, as shown in Fig. 5, in

which event the gnidesj merely serve to prevent the dislocation of thebolt.

Ordinarily while the car is running the doors are all closed and thelocking-bolt is retracted and :ontof the path of movement of thevalve-lever. \Vhen a door is open, however, the locking-bolt is operatedby the operative means between the doors and said bolt, and the latteris thrown forward to locking position, as Should a the bolt will beforced backwardly by the bow, as previously stated, until the bolt andthe lever are engaged by the shoulders'nh It may be stated that if thelever g is to the left of the bolt t' in Fig. 1 a normally open circuitcould be used or the lever m could be shifted to the position shown inFig. 3, so as to retain the normally closed safety-circuit.

In'Fig. 7 an embodiment is illustrated'in which the operative meansbetween the doors and the bolts is of a mechanical nature. In thisinstance the bolt 2' is adapted to be actuated by the lever m, one armof which is equipped with the weightin Thislast-mentioned arm isindicated at m, and it is connected by a rod or wire m with a threearmedlever r. The last-mentioned lever is provided with an arm 1", carryingan adjustable weight 0' an arm W, to which the rod or wire m isconnected, and a third arm 0, which plays between stops r formed on aplate carrying the fulcrum 1' for the said le-' ver 'r.

In lieu of the door-actuated switches (illustrated in Fig. 1)bell-cranks s are mounted to be engaged by each door when the latter isin closed position. Upon the door being opened a spring .9 swings thelever about its fulcrum s and the lever is so connected by a chain orother flexible connection 3 with In addition to the features thus fardescribed there is provided mechanism for temporarily efiecting thewithdrawal of the bolt to inoperative position, even though one of thedoors be open.

In Fig. 1 a shunt-circuit e is provided and is arranged in multiple withthat portion of the safety-circuit which includes the switches d. Thesaid shunt-circuit e includes a stationary contact a and a movablecontact or .switch lever 6 which is provided with a weight by which itis held open, as shown. A line 25 extends from the top to the bottom ofthe well and passes through the car or outside close to thedoor-opening, so as to be in position to be grasped by the attendant.The upper endof the line may be attached to a suitable support at thetop of theshaft or well, and its lower end is connected to theswitch-lever 6*, so that by drawing upward on the line the lever 6 maybe caused to engage a stationary contact a so as to close the circuitthrough the solenoid f, even though .in Fig. 7. In this case the line23, which extends from the top to the bottom of the elevator-well,passes around a pulley t at the bottom of thewell and is connected withthe end of the bolt 1'. If the bolt should be in engagement with thelever and a door be opened above or below the car, the attendant maydraw upward on the line i, so as to retract the bolt '5 and permit himto swing the valve-lever by means of the controller.

I do not herein claim the mechanical lockfreeing mechanism per se, as itforms the subject-matter of a divisional application, Serial No.162,985, filed June 25, 1903.

Having thus explained the nature of the invention and described a way ofconstructing and using the same, although without attempting to setforth all of the forms in which it may be made or all of the modes ofits use, I declare that what I claim is- 1. A safety appliance forelevators, comprising a door, a motor-controlling mechanism, a leverpivoted to said motor-controlling mechanism, a locking member attachedto said pivoted lever and extending substan; tially perpendicularly tothe median line of said pivoted lever, said locking member having on itsexposed face stops with inclined outer surfaces, a second locking membermovable substantially at right angles to the plane of movement of saidpivoted lever, and operative means between said door and said secondlocking member whereby when said door is opened the last-mentionedlocking member is actuated to engage said first-mentioned member.

2. A safety appliance for elevators comprising the combination with adoor, anda motor-controlling mechanism, of the following instr umentalities-to wit, a lever pivoted to said motor-controlling mechanism,a bolt movable at right angles to the plane of movement of said lever,and a locking member on one of said instrumentalities and having arecess to receive the other instrumentality, said locking memberextending in lines transverse to the median line of the bolt andhaving.

stops with inclined outer surfaces, said stops. being separated to formsaid recess substantially as described.

3. A safety appliance for elevators com: prising a motor-controller, acar movable relatively thereto, a locking instrumentality adapted tomove into engagement with said motor-con troller, an electromagnet, anarmature therefor, a counterbalancing means connected with and acting inthe same direction as the armature for counterbalancing the saidarmature and reducing the power required to operate saidlockinginstrumentality, doorcontrolled switches, and an electric circuitincluding said switches and said electromagnet,

4:. A safety appliance for elevators comprising a door, amotor-controlling mechanism, a lever pivoted to said motor-controllingmechanism and located at the bottom of the well, a lockinginstrumentality movable toward and from the plane of movement of saidlever, and a bow mounted upon said lever and extending in the directionof its lines of movement beyond its sides, said bow having on itsexposed face stops with inclined outer surfaces, said stops beingseparated to form arrecess for the reception of said lockinginstrumentality.

5. A safety appliance for elevators comprising a car, a controller, alock therefor, one or more doors, a safety-circuitincluding one or moredoor-actuated switches and an electromagnet for the lock, asupplementalswitcha supplemental switch located in the well, and

means operable from the car for moving the circuit and operable from thecar for moving said supplemental switch. said supplemental switch. 1 n

7. A safety appliance for elevators com- In testimony whereof I haveaifixed mysigprising a car, a controller, a lock therefor, a nature inpresence of two witnesses.

door, a safety-circuit including a door-actu- GEORGE HAIL.

ated switch and an electromagnet for the lock, Witnesses:

a supplemental switchlocated in the well, and HENRY A. GREENE,

means in the Well independent of said safety- AUGUSTA ALLEN.

